Beautiful Huangmei opera was performed at a senior high school in Flushing, New York City, on the first day of the first month of the lunar calendar. It was the third time that the Anhui Performance & Arts Troupe visited the US. After more than two months of preparation and rehearsal, the six outstanding performances came to a successful end.

Anhui operas shine overseas "Music is a universal language that people around the world employ to communicate," said Jiang Jianguo, the head of the Anhui Provincial Troupe of Huangmei opera. He added, "American friends love local Anhui operas very much and there was a full house for every performance."

The mayor of Houston approved that February 15, 2013, be authorized as Huangmei-Opera and Hui-Opera Day. More than 400 tickets were soon snapped up for the show. Laurie Wagma, the founder and president of America Youth Arts Troupe, sent an email to the organizer after the performance, "The costumes of Hui opera are gorgeous and Huangmei opera is beautiful."

During Spring Festival, Anhui Provincial Song & Dance Troupe, Anhui Provincial Acrobatic Troupe and Anhui National Music Troupe performed at the International Arts Festival of Muscat, Oman. The Chinese New Year performance earned huge applause.

"The market for performances in gulf states is huge, and last year Anhui Provincial Acrobatic Troupe performed there and achieved overnight success in Oman. This year we received a big order, so the three troupes decided to perform together," said Yu Hongjie, the head of the Anhui Provincial Song & Dance Troupe. He added, "The audiences in West Asia have a keen interest in the flower-drum-lantern dance, known as 'Eastern Ballet', and audiences crowded the stage tightly."

Cultural exports rise as a new force The cultural export volume across Anhui reached $950 million in 2012, increasing by 10.4 times year-on-year and ranking seventh in China. The number of key enterprises and projects of national cultural export in 2011 and 2012 ranked sixth across the country and first in central China.